The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-05-02
THE sTREETcAR coMPANY's METHODS.
How 1t Manages to Influence Some Council
men Without Bribing Them Outright.

1.-THE street-railway company" said a we'll
known attorney in conversation with number
of gentlemen don't buy Councilmen outright
but they manage to hold a majority of every
Council under obligations to them that the
interests of the company never interfered
with
How is that donep was the inquiry.
I'm the first place. the street-car company.
through some of its members employees. fire.
quently assists in nominating Councilmen.
Sometimes they nominate both the oppos
ing candidates In ward and no
matter whether the Democrat the
Republican is elected the company has a
stanch friend from that ward. If you will look
over the members of this City Council, or any
one that we have had for years, you will notice
that many OF them not men who have
any great business interests here. They are
men for the most part of small transactions. A
very small expenditure of money with most any
of them, and that too, In legitimate way. fixes
their friendship and makes them subservienr-
Suppose one of the members of the Council is
painter. The street-car company gives him
contract to paint barn two, and makes him
trusted friend Perhaps he has material or
some kind to sell that the street-ear company can
buy. 1t may be lum ber or hardware or paints and
oils, or it may give employment TO council
mans brothef-ln-l law, or soma otner mem
Der of his family. and the councilman
is duly grateful Some of these gentlemen
have looked after the street-car compauy's in
terest with sleeploss vigilance When a com
peting company wanted to come in here, a few
years ago. an ordinance allowing it franchise
came very near passing. One two gentle
men insisted little amendments very
trivial affair. The amendment merely pre-
scribed that certain kind of rail should be
used for the track. Singuarly enough, Mr.
Tom johnson, of the street-car company, was
the patentee of that particular kind of rail-
OF course, under ouch condition, the new com
pany couldn't come in. The aldermen who
favored this ingenious amendment were re-
membered when they desired denomination,
and failed to get the nomination second time.
1T is the policy of the street-car company
have heard member of the company express
the sentiment-not to accede to any request for
track extensiou or accommodations of any kind
until forced to do So They hold that if they
set precedent of that kind by yielding
they would be pushed to do things they DO
they are ready for them SO they prefer to
fight the interests of the city and citizens, and
always make the resistance obstinate as pos
sible. When the Council passed resolution
ordering the company to lay track
on Mississippi street to Twelfth. what
did the company do? They laid short strip of
track from Indiana avenue to short distance
beyond Pratt street and stopped They were
determined not to do what was demanded of
them, and didn't do it.
1.-The little fellows of the Council are overawed
by a corporation or a man with money. They
are toadies to wealth. Fifty dollars worth of
work to of them. that amount in what
ever commodity the city legislator may deal in
is sufficient to fix his everlasting gratitude"